ANAHEIM, Califa. (Fevereiro. 27, 2016) – Leão “Terremoto” Santa Cruz defended his WBA Featherweight World Championship in convincing fashion no sábado noite, knocking down Kiko “Sensación” Martinez twice in the first round, then ending it on a barrage of punches as the fight was called at 2:09 in the fifth round in the main event of a Showtime Championship Boxing doubleheader at Honda Center in Anaheim, Califa.

Na co-metragem sobre ALTURA DE COMEÇAR, 29-anos Hugo Ruiz (36-3, 31 KOs), Los Mochis, Sinaloa, México, regained his WBC Super Bantamweight World Title with a devastating early knockdown with just 51 seconds into the 12-round fight against 23-year-old Julho Ceja (30-2, 27 KOs) of Atizapan De Zaragoza, México, in a highly anticipated rematch of their August fight won by Ceja.

Fighting just 10 miles west of his hometown of La Habra and before 7,780 enthusiastic fans, the 27-year-old Santa Cruz (32-0-1, 18 KOs) continued to establish himself as the King of Southern California as he punished the game 29-year-old Martinez (35-7, 26 KOs) of Alicante, Valencia, Espanha, com 570 total punches in just five rounds. Havia 1,038 total punches thrown during the fight.

“The fans love it when two fighters go toe-to-toe,” Santa Cruz told SHOWTIME’s Jim Gray after the fight. “I wanted to give the fans a great fight. I knew I could hurt him with a right hand. He’s a fighter and when he’s knocked down, he’s going to come back. In the fifth round I knew I had to finish him off and I did.”

Santa Cruz continued, “We were going toe-to-toe from the beginning. He’s was throwing good punches I was throwing out good punches and the crowd was loving it. Then my dad told me to slow down and be smarter so we started boxing.”

Santa Cruz wasted no time getting the upper hand as the opening bell rung. He knocked Martinez out twice in the first round; the first just 23 seconds into the fight and the second on a devastating right hand at two minutes into the round prompting SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING play-by-play announcer Mauro Ranallo to tell expert analyst Al Bernstein: “We may be able to get to Disneyland before the end of the night.”

Martinez fell into a groove in the third and fourth rounds, but got into trouble two minutes into the fifth round as Santa Cruz had him up against the ropes connecting on numerous body shots, uppercuts and combinations before referee Raul Caiz Sr. signaled the end of the fight for Santa Cruz’s second straight world title defense in Southern California.

Martinez said that Santa Cruz, “started to move a lot and he broke my strategy and he fought a great fight. The second round I was getting looser and I was starting to feel much better.

“He was like a bull coming forward really strong,” Santa Cruz added. “He has definitely been one of the strongest fighters I’ve been in the ring with yet.

“Towards the end I said, ‘this is it, this is my opportunity to take him down. If I don’t finish him right here, it’s going to make it a really tough fight.’ So I said I was going at it with my all and thankfully it turned out the way that it did.”

Santa Cruz, making his second defense after capturing the world title from Abner Mares back in August, said someday he wants to break the records for most punches thrown in a fight. “I wanted to throw as many punches as I can so the fans could get a good show.”

Santa Cruz is now eyeing a future potential matchup with IBF 122-pound world champion Carl Frampton em 126 pounds or Gary Russell. “I’m up for anyone,” ele disse. “I want the rematch with (Abner) Mães. Since Frampton won, if he’s ready to go up in weight, I’m ready for him. I challenge him to a fight whenever he’s ready.”

In a rematch of the WBC Super Bantamweight World Title he lost last August, the new 122-pound champion Ruiz improved his record to 5-0 in rematches (com cinco knockouts) as he delivered a stunning first-round knockout against Ceja, who injured his right ankle on a powerful clean right just seconds into the fight sending him to the canvas.

Ceja got up slowly but was battered with a fury of punches and knocked out again with just 51 seconds into the fight ending the affair.

“I was very prepared to knock him out, but I was prepared to go 12 rounds hoje à noite also if I had to,” said Ruiz, who was teary and emotional following the victory. “I was happy to knock him out in the first round. I’m looking for the best fighters and the best money out there.”

Said SHOWTIME analyst Paulie Malignaggi: “I’ve never seen a first-round KO that soon in a fight of this much importance.” Added SHOWTIME’s Bernstein: “The right hand was the weapon of choice for Ruiz, and he got the job done. What a moment of redemption for Ruiz!”

Sobrancelha, who beat Ruiz on a fifth-round knockout last August to win the world title, was hurt from the first series of Ruiz punches and never recovered in the intense first round.

Ceja was taken to nearby UC Irvine Hospital and diagnosed with a fractured right ankle.

“I saw that he got hurt with the first punch and I saw his leg wobbling and so I said, ‘Let’s finish’,” Ruiz disse. “And I did in that round.”

Mais cedo Sábado a partir de Manchester, Inglaterra, em Showtime Boxing INTERNATIONAL, IBF 122-pound world champion Carl Frampton unified the super bantamweight division with a split decision victory over WBA titlist Scott QUIGG.

The long-awaited matchup of unbeaten champions got off to a slow and tactical start, but Belfast native Frampton (22-0, 14 KOs) established himself as the aggressor and worked his jab to pocket the early rounds. Quigg didn’t come alive until after the seventh, when trainer Joe Gallagher warned his charge that he was likely down big on the judges’ scorecards.

QUIGG (31-1-2) pounded the body and was the aggressor in rounds eight through 11, but it was too little, too late for the Lancashire, England native. Frampton won the 12^th and walked away the unified champion by scores of 115-113 for Quigg, mas 116-112 twice for Frampton.

O doubleheader Showtime Championship Boxing vai voltar ao ar nesta semana, como segue:

DAY CHANNEL

Amanhã, Domingo, Fevereiro. 28, 3 a.m. E/12 a.m. PT SHOW EXTREME

Amanhã, Domingo, Fevereiro. 28, 9 am ET/PT SHOWTIME

Segunda-feira, Fevereiro. 29, 10 p.m. E/PT SHOWTIME EXTREME

Sábado -dois lutam transmissão estará disponível no canal Showtime ON DEMAND início amanhã, Domingo, Fevereiro. 28.

Brian Custer sediou a cerimônia SHOWTIME, com Mauro Ranallo chamando a ação, Hall of Fame analista Al Bernstein e ex-campeão do mundo duas vezes Paulie Malignaggicomentando e Jim Gray relatando. No simulcast Espanhola, Alejandro Luna chamou o golpe por golpe e ex-campeão do mundo Raul Marquez atuou como comentarista. O produtor executivo do canal Showtime Championship Boxing foi David Dinkins Jr. com Bob Dunphy direção.

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Santa Cruz vs. Martinez, was 12-round bout for Santa Cruz’s WBA Featherweight Title taking place on Saturday, Fevereiro. 27 no Honda Center em Anaheim, Calif., promoted by TGB Promotions in association with Sampson Boxing Promotions and sponsored by Corona. Na co-metragem, Julio Ceja and Hugo Ruiz met in a super bantamweight world title rematch for the WBC belt. The SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING telecast aired live on SHOWTIME (10 p.m. E/7 p.m. PT) and was available in Spanish via Secondary Audio Programming (SAP).

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